CHAPTER ONE

BACKGROUND TO STUDY

“One picture is worth ten thousand words”

(Barnard,1927)1

1.0 Introduction

A picture tells a story and highlights many things – it matters not if it is a young

child’s drawing, a Picasso painting or a LAT cartoon. It conveys the artist’s messages,

both the expressly intended and subtle unwitting ones. Indeed, in bygone times, when

few could read or write, pictures in the form of chiselled stones, tapestries, paintings or

stained glass windows were used to record, inform and educate people. Even in our

literate age, pictures continue to communicate information, bridging language barriers,

as proven by such signs as shown in Figure 1.1 below:-

i zA B C

Figure 1.1Common Public Signs

______________________________________________________________________1 from 'The Oxford Book of Quotations'

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(

It can be surmised that picture A denotes ‘Information or Queries counter’, while

picture B ‘Telephones available here’ and picture C ‘NO Smoking Zone’. These signs

can normally be found in public areas, such as hospitals, bus terminals, railway stations,

airports and shopping complexes.

1.1 Background of the Study

Cartoons are humourous pictures with minimal words. The saying ‘many a truth

is said in jest’ is also true of cartoons, as the artist puts across his views about situations

and relationships in a humorous vein, often having a great impact on his audience. The

use of jest or the humour genre is important, as serious issues can be put across in a

light hearted manner, making them palatable for the masses. Cartoons normally use

real, everyday language – a point highlighted by Jariah Mohd. Jan (2004) in her study of

selected English language cartoon strips. Thus, the discourse can be analysed from the

linguistic perspective as well as any underlying cultural perspective, as culture is

intrinsically entwined with language.

1.1.1 Discourse Analysis and Cartoons

What is discourse? What is discourse analysis? Over the years, scholars have

differed in their views of what constitute discourse and discourse analysis. Although the

term 'discourse' has been around for quite a while, the first person to use the term

'discourse analysis' was “...Zellig Harris in 1952 as a way of analysing connected speech

and writing” (Paltridge, 2006:2). Harris was a teacher of Chomsky

(http://www.discourse-analysis.de/) – the latter, a 'guru' to many linguists that followed.

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Paltridge (2006:2) noted that “...Harris had two main interests: the examination of

language beyond the level of the sentence and the relationship between linguistic and

non-linguistic behaviour.” The former aimed “...to provide a way for describing how

language features are distributed within texts and the ways in which they are combined

in particular kinds and styles...thus, typical ways of using language in particular

situations...not only share particular meanings, they also have characteristic linguistic

features associated with them”; while by the latter, “...Harris means how people know,

from the situation that they are in, how to interpret what someone says” (Paltridge,

2006:2-3).

Before and since then, various scholars have come up with different definitions

of discourse; and post-Harris, various definitions of discourse analysis too. In his A

Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics, noted linguist Crystal had defined discourse as

“A term used in LINGUISTICS to refer to a continuous stretch of (especially spoken)

LANGUAGE larger than a SENTENCE...e.g. a conversation, a joke...”; while discourse

analysis (DA) is seen as the attempt “...to discover linguistic regularities in

discourses...using GRAMMATICAL, PHONOLOGICAL and SEMANTIC criteria...”

(Crystal, 2008: 148). Discourse scholars too (such as Carter et al, Paltridge, Cook,

Brown and Yule) have come up with their views of what constitutes DA. Among them:

Carter et al (2008:141) pointed out that “In linguistics, the phrase discourse

analysis is used to refer to the analysis of both spoken and written texts. In each

case, the aim is to analyse the way texts work across the boundaries of single

sentences or utterances to form whole stretches of language”. They further

noted: “The word 'context' contains the word 'text': it refers to the factors that

work alongside or with the text to create meaning...the context for any text is the

larger culture which surrounds it, and the reading of any text results from the

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interplay of the text itself and the cultural framework that the reader brings to

it”, with 'culture' denoting “...all the factors that bind groups together in all

aspects of social life...” (Carter et al, 2008:178-179).

Paltridge (2006:2) defined DA as “Discourse analysis focuses on knowledge

about language beyond the word, clause, phrase and sentence that is needed for

successful communication. It looks at patterns of language across texts and

considers the relationship between language and the social and cultural contexts

in which it is used. Discourse analysis also considers the ways that the use of

language presents different views of the world and different understandings. It

examines how the use of language is influenced by relationships between

participants as well as the effects the use of language has upon social identities

and relations. It also considers how views of the world, and identities, are

constructed through the use of discourse. Discourse analysis examines both

spoken and written texts”.

Cook (1989:6), noted that “...- language in use, for communication is called

discourse; and the search for what gives discourse coherence is discourse

analysis.” Later, Cook (1992:1) further elaborated on this: “...Although the

main focus of discourse analysis is on language, it is not concerned with

language alone. It also examines the context of communication: who is

communicating with whom and why; in what kind of society and situation;

through what medium; how different types and acts of communication evolved

and their relationship to each other. When music and pictures combine with

language to alter or add to its meaning, then discourse analysis must consider

these modes of communication too.” He stressed that “Discourse is text and

context together, interacting in a way which is perceived as meaningful and

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unified by the participants (who are both part of the context and observers of it)”

(Cook,1992:2).

Brown and Yule (1983:1) put it as: “The analysis of discourse is, necessarily,

the analysis of language in use” and “...the discourse analyst is committed to an

investigation of what that language is used for”.

Briefly put, discourse is thus “...“language-in-use” or “socially situated text and talk”...”

( http://www.discourse-analysis.de/) while the analysis of such would involve questions

on “...how written, oral and visual texts are used in specific contexts to make

meanings...” (http://www.discourse-analysis.de/).

Thus, texts under DA covers the written, the spoken, as well as the visual. Over

the years, several approaches to DA such as Conversational Analysis, Political

Discourse Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) (http://www.discourse-

analysis.de/) have been developed, to cover the various types of texts. Which approach

to be used in doing a DA, would depend on the respective scholar's inclination and area

of study. The last - CDA - appeared about three decades ago, when scholars noted that

the analysis done on discourse then focussed on the linguistic aspect and had

overlooked the interrelatedness of the text with politics, culture and society. As

previously noted, CDA is a form of DA, and within it, there are several models (such as

Wodak's, van Dijk's and Fairclough's) for the analysis of text. This study would use

Fairclough's 3-Dimensional Framework and Intertextuality in analysing the chosen data

(cartoons) as the tools required for the text and intertext analysis are contained within

Fairclough's model.

Mazid (2008) noting the multimodality of discourse, sees the analysis leaning

more towards semiotics than discourse; this according to him “...seems to be necessary

in handling many modern and contemporary media texts, including political cartoons”

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(Mazid, 2008). Earlier on, Cook (1992:1&37) had also placed pictures and cartoons as

part of the context that must be viewed together with the language used. Thus, cartoons

(political or otherwise), whether printed or animated, could also be considered as a form

of discourse and hence, are open for study, as seen in Jensen (2008), Greenberg (2002)

and Väätäinen (2002). The first two looked at printed caricatures, while the third

studied animated cartoons. Fairclough's 3-Dimensional Framework was used in

Jensen's (2008) article, which discussed the ramifications of the Mohamed caricatures

controversy on the Danish people and products, both in Denmark and abroad – clearly

an evidence of discourse and society mutually affecting one another. Greenberg's

(2002) study adopted both Goffmann's Framing and Mead's Theory of Temporality as

complementary frameworks in its discussion of printed cartoons giving a negative

portrayal of the immigrants to Canada. Väätäinen's (2002) study used Fairclough's

Intertextuality and Interdiscursivity in analysing the language used, the visuals as well

as viewers' knowledge and perception of the selected characters portrayed in “The

Simpsons” show, an animated American television series that was seen as rooted in

reality and representative of the American culture – all of which a translator, per

Väätäinen, needs to be aware of as it may unconsciously affect the fans' view of reality.

1.1.2 Choice of “Dr. Who?!”

Why choose Lat’s cartoons for analysis? Why cartoons on Dr. M (Tun Datuk

Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed), in particular? Lat and Dr. M are Malaysian icons, as each

in his own way, has put Malaysia’s name on the world consciousness. First published in

2004, “Dr. Who?!- Capturing the life and times of a Leader in cartoons...” (or in brief,

“Dr. Who?!”) is the only compilation of Lat’s cartoons that highlights a single

prominent Malaysian public figure – Dr. M. Lat’s appearance as a full time cartoonist

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with the New Straits Times (NST), a local English daily, came around the same time as

Dr. M joined the Cabinet (Lat, 2004), with both occurring in 1974 (Redza Piyadasa,

2003; http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/). Indeed, since Lat's cartoons in that newspaper

appeared more than three decades ago, it can be said that a whole generation of

Malaysians have grown and matured reading Lat's cartoons, with the majority knowing

only Dr. M as Prime Minister (PM).

1.1.3 Lat

Mohd. Nor Khalid or “Lat”, views his cartoons as ‘editorial cartoons’ instead of

‘political cartoons’ as he sees them as social commentary of daily life and current affairs

(Campbell, 2007). He was first called 'Bulat' or 'round' in Malay by his family, which

was shortened to Lat by his schoolmates (Willmott, 2007), and by which he made his

name in the world of caricature, having been acclaimed as the foremost cartoonist in

Malaysia, if not in Asia (Redza Piyadasa, 2003). Lat's books are so popular, that

Malaysian students (Campbell, 2007) and expatriates have been known to bring them

when they go abroad for study and work. Indeed, his autobiographical books, most

notably “The Kampung Boy”, have been translated into several languages, among them

Japanese, French, Portuguese (Salmy Hashim, 2007) with German being the ninth and

latest translation while the Spanish, Italian and Thai translations are soon to be

published (Appendix). These books had garnered him admirers from around the globe,

including “The Simpsons” creator Matt Groening (Siti Rohani, 2007; New Sunday

Times, 31 August 2008). Why the wide appeal? The reason is simple - Lat has

managed to capture Malaysians and Malaysian scenes in frank, funny, yet thought

provoking ways, as well as giving a quintessentially Malaysian perception of foreign

places and people, as well as world events.

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Born in 1951 (Chamil Warya, 2007), the Perak bred Lat started doodling while

still young, encouraged by his parents who supplied him with the materials (Appendix;

Lat,1983; Chamil Warya, 2007). Indeed, his father even showed him how to sketch

certain figures (Lat, 1983) and often asked Lat to draw what he had seen after going on

an outing with him (Appendix). Raja Hamzah, a Malay comic book pioneer, was an

early influence with Lat copying “his style of bold strokes”(Lat, 1983). Art was his

favourite subject in school (Lat,1980a) and Lat knew he was good in drawing at an

early age as his work was always picked by the teacher “...to show the whole class as a

good example” (Lat, 1977). Lat credits his former English teacher, Mrs. Hew, as being

instrumental to his good grasp of the English language (Appendix), the language found

in most of his drawings now. His earliest cartoons appeared in movie magazines

'Majallah Filem' (or Film Magazine) and Movie News (Appendix), before he became a

regular cartoon contributor to a Malay language weekly “Berita Minggu” while he was

still in school (New Sunday Times, 31 August 2008; Appendix). He decided while still

in his teens, that he wanted to be a good and successful artist (Lat,1980a). Such was his

talent that Lat was even consulted by a peer on how to improve the latter's drawings

(Lat,1980a).

Lat started work as a crime reporter with the NST in 1970, before his 'Bersunat'

(Circumcision) cartoon strip which had appeared in the Asia Magazine, led him to

become the first full time cartoonist to be employed by NST four years later (Redza

Piyadasa, 2003). Lat's cartoons were initially about his family, friends and village life

(New Straits Times, 5 September 2008) as he remembered his granny's advice - “...don't

forget about us back here in the kampung” (Lat, 1977). He credits his exposure as a

crime reporter and the suggestions of the late Tan Sri A. Samad Ismail, the National

Journalism Laureate and the then NST's managing editor cum deputy editor-in-chief,

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that his latter cartoons included social issues and current events (New Straits Times, 5

September 2008). Until his sojourn in London in 1975 to study drawing, he had not

known that cartoons could feature political or well known figures (Appendix) - he

rectified this on his return when he started to do editorial cartoons. Another influence,

his late mentor, Rejabhad, had advised him not to mock anyone in his caricatures and to

be sensitive of his audience – an advice which Lat took to heart (New Sunday Times, 31

August 2008; Appendix). Lat ventured out as a freelancer in 1983 (Willmott, 2007), but

continues to have his cartoons printed in the NST until today.

Lat is a trailblazer, collecting many firsts along the way: he was the first

cartoonist to be bestowed with the honorary title of ‘Dato’ (in 1994) and invited to the

United States in 1998 as an Eisenhower Exchange fellow (Redza Piyadasa, 2003), as

well as becoming the first Malaysian cartoonist to be conferred an honorary doctorate

(Sunday Star, 12 August 2007), an accolade granted by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

(National University of Malaysia), and whose cartoons were given the honour to appear

first in the Malaysian stamp series on cartoons (New Straits Times, 27 November 2008).

Due to his wide appeal, his cartoons have been used by many companies – appearing as

place settings in a big hotel, as advertisements for a big local bank and even on the body

of an airplane! Indeed, for several years now, his cartoons have been used during

festive seasons to remind road users about road safety and the pitfalls of not following

safety rules.

Lat's cartoons have also been used to test and educate. In mid-1981, students at

Institut Teknologi MARA (including this researcher) had to write an essay based on a

Lat cartoon in their English placement examination. The cartoon panels depicted a man

landing in hospital after slipping on a mound of durians (a local pungent thorny fruit)

while making his choice for purchase. In 2001, Lat started a collaboration with Bank

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Negara Malaysia, illustrating their annual ‘Pocket Money Book’ to educate school

children about savings and personal finances (Redza Piyadasa, 2003), which continues

until today (Appendix). It is not only Malaysian institutions who have employed his

talents, but also international organisations as well, as seen when UNESCO in late

1980s commissioned Lat for a series of short animated films (in collaboration with the

Japanese) with “Mina” as the main character, in their campaign to eradicate illiteracy in

targeted Asian countries (Appendix; Chamil Wariya, 2007) – this collaborative work

was but the first of several Lat had undertaken over the years (Appendix). Among the

latest, a “...collaboration of arts and music...” was the world debut of 'Lat's Window to

the World' concert held on 1-3 May 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, where the “...Malaysian

Philharmonic Orchestra under renowned American conductor and composer Carl

Davis...” accompanied three specially commissioned short animated films of Lat's (New

Sunday Times, 19 April 2009).

1.1.4 Dr. M

Born in 1925, Tun Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, or “Dr. M” was first

appointed to the Malaysian Cabinet as Minister of Education on 6 October 1974

(http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/). Dr. M later became Malaysia’s fourth PM, serving

twenty two and a quarter years in that capacity (Chamil Wariya, 2007), from 16 July

1981 to October 31st 2003 (http://www.perdana.org.my/index.php?

option=com_content&view=article&id=187&Itemid=136). He was the first PM from a

science background (graduating from a regional tertiary institution) - a medical doctor,

no less (Chamil Wariya, 2007) – after that position had been held by three lawyers, all

graduates of English tertiary institutions. Dr. M was ultimately responsible for

Malaysia’s policies, some of which were viewed unfavourably by the Western world,

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especially so when they went against Western norms, such as the pegging of the ringgit

and currency controls imposed in 1998 (this was later lifted), the earlier, short-lived

“Buy British Last”, as well as the “Look East” policy whereby Malaysians were

exhorted to emulate Japanese and Korean work ethics and management practices

(Kamila Ghazali, 2004; Chamil Warya, 2007). Under the “Look East” policy,

Malaysians were sent to Japan and Korea in previously unimagined numbers to study

and gain technological knowledge, as well as to absorb their good characteristics - this

policy is still in place.

Some of the policies introduced by Dr. M, such as the introduction of the punch

card for government servants and the synchronisation of time of Peninsular Malaysia

with that of Sabah and Sarawak in the early years of his administration (Chamil Warya,

2007), continue to impact Malaysians until today. The latter - the synchronisation of

time for the whole of Malaysia to +0800 GMT at the close of 1981 - even forced our

neighbour Singapore to follow suit, otherwise their hours for trading would be reduced

and their economic activities would be adversely affected, as a big portion of their

commercial activities were interlinked with Malaysia's.

Other policies that have a continued impact on the ordinary Malaysian are the

Islamisation process of the country (Kamila Ghazali, 2004), which included the

founding of the International Islamic University and the launch of an Islamic financial

system with the setting up of Bank Islam and Syarikat Takaful (Islamic Insurance)

followed by similar and other Islamic financial institutions; the liberalisation of the

education sector with the establishment of more local universities (public and private)

and branch campuses of foreign universities; the privatisation of previously government

owned entities (e.g. railway and utilities); the building of the tolled North-South PLUS

highway and the new and larger Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang;

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as well as the launching of the national car company, Proton followed later by Perodua

(Chamil Warya, 2007). These policies were also viewed as business friendly, as Dr. M

was known for encouraging investment and manufacturing.

The introduction of an Islamic financial system offered Malaysians, both

Muslims and non-Muslims alike, an alternative form of investment, finance and

insurance to that previously available, at competitive rates. This later led to

conventional financial institutions jumping on the same bandwagon, with them offering

Islamic products similar to those offered by the Islamic financial institutions with

consumers now spoilt for choice. The liberalisation of the education sector gave

Malaysians greater choice and opportunity to further their education, creating a bigger

pool of educated Malaysians and enhancing their employability. It also put Malaysia on

the education radar of other countries with the setting up of branch campuses and

twinning programmes, as it would be cheaper to undergo the courses here than in the

universities’ country of origin. This also indirectly helped to promote our tourism

industry, with the influx of foreign students and their visiting families. The car projects

helped to create other companies that provided parts and other supplies for Proton and

Perodua. The infrastructure (PLUS highway and KLIA) helped in reducing

transportation time of goods and increased the capacity for handling air freight goods;

both important considerations for the business community that is always striving to stay

competitive in an increasingly globalised era.

It had been noted that computer literacy and high technology defined the

developed nations. The introduction of computer and information technology classes in

schools, with the establishment of the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) in late 1990s

(Economic Report 2001/2002) centred in Cyberjaya, and the setting up of the

Multimedia University there, were among Dr. M's measures to bring Malaysia closer to

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developed nation status - in line with the objective of making Malaysia a high

technology and industrial society by 2020 (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/) complete

with a knowledge based workforce and economy (Economic Report 2001/2002).

As with other public figures, there was a private side to Dr. M, which can

sometimes be glimpsed at. As a leader constantly in the news, Dr. M was fodder for

cartoonists, both local and foreign. Due to his long tenure in office, Dr. M, for good or

ill, has left a huge impression, especially on the generation that grew up under his

stewardship.

1.1.5 The Malaysian Political Scene

The cartoons depicting Dr. M are mostly political in nature. Thus, an

understanding of the Malaysian political scene and history is necessary, for it would

throw some light on the underlying implicit position or stand suggested by the cartoons.

Multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia is a parliamentary

democracy with a constitutional monarchy (Muhammad Kamil Awang, 1998:116),

consisting of thirteen states and three federal territories. The King or Yang Di-Pertuan

Agong is elected on a rotation basis every five years by his brother rulers from the nine

states having royal families (Muhammad Kamil Awang, 1998:114). Prior to the 19th

century, the Malay Peninsula, as its name implies, was overwhelmingly Malay

(http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/), with pockets of other races having trader ancestors

seen in the bigger settlements - mostly on the West coast of the peninsular. Malaysia's

current population mix arose from the British divide and rule policy that encouraged

migrants from China and India to work the tin mines in the mid 19th century and rubber

estates in the early 20th century, respectively (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/).

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During World War II, what is now Malaysia, came under Japanese rule. 1945

saw the Japanese defeated and World War Two drew to a close in Asia. The British

returned and imposed the Malayan Union (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/) on Malaya

(as the Malay Peninsula was then known to Westerners), which sought to do away with

the special position of the Malays, their way of life and their rulers in their own land,

while migrants were to be treated as if they were indigenous to Malaya

(h ttp://www.pilihanraya.com.my/Melayu/umno.asp ) . In 1946, Dato' Onn Jaafar united

the Malays under UMNO (United Malay National Organisation) to oppose this and

succeeded in getting it scrapped (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/). UMNO then

demanded independence. Meanwhile, the Chinese and Indians also formed their own

groupings, the Malayan Chinese Association (or MCA) and the Malayan Indian

Congress (or MIC) respectively, to represent them politically. After negotiations and

compromises (among them: Islam recognised as the nation's official religion, other

faiths allowed to be practised but not propagated to Muslims, the monarchy maintained,

the Malays' and other indigenous people's position safeguarded with Malay as the

national language, and citizenship for migrants residing in Malaya at point of

independence), UMNO, with MCA and MIC formed the Alliance government that led

Malaya on 31 August 1957 to officially throw off the Western colonial yoke after over

four hundred years of Western colonising (Portuguese, Dutch and finally the British),

with Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj (Tunku) of UMNO as the first PM

(http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/). Tunku was the main person who managed to get the

various communities to agree to live harmoniously with one another, respecting each

others' creed and culture. The continued and widespread use of English as a second

language is a legacy left by the British, despite the declaration in the constitution of

Malay as the national language.

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Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore amalgamated to form Malaysia on 16

September 1963 (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/), although Singapore was later booted

out on 9 August 1965 (Muhammad Kamil Awang, 1998:157), after their unceasing

demands to abolish fundamentals in the constitution (in respect of Islam, the Malays

and the Malay language) previously agreed to, prior to Malaysia's formation. The

Alliance, which later expanded and became the National Front (Malay for Barisan

Nasional or BN) in 1971, have formed the federal government since independence

(http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/).

Realising there is strength in numbers as a lone voice would be ignored,

independent Malaya, and later, Malaysia, joined and actively participated in various

groupings, such as the United Nations (UN) (http://maf.mod.gov.my/plpm/index.html),

the Commonwealth, and even co-founded ASEAN (Association of South East Asian

Nations) in 1967 (http://www.aseansec.org/64.htm).

1.1.6 How Lat DrawsThe data to be researched is Lat's cartoons, therefore, how Lat draws the visuals

needs to be known in brief, to gain insights of the paralanguage used. Lat, the child

started by copying pictures, finishing sketches done by his father (Lat, 1983) and

drawing what he saw (Appendix). In drawing people, Lat would use bold strokes -

imitating an early Malay cartoonist, Raja Hamzah (Lat, 1983), while trying to keep

things simple and inoffensive, as advised by his mentor, Rejabhad (Siti Rohani, 2007;

Appendix). He also admitted that comic books which he had read, such as 'Beano' and

'Dandy', as well as the cartoons 'Bristow' (Campbell, 2007) and 'Peanuts' (Appendix)

had somewhat influenced his way of drawing. For example, he drew himself with a pile

of hair in “The Kampung Boy”, similar to the cartoon character 'Smasher' found in a

British children's comics, as the practice then was to portray a naughty boy with bushy

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hair (Campbell, 2007). Lat would start by drawing the nose, then the rest of face (Lat,

1980b), before filling in the other relevant details. He would use a pencil first to draw

the face of a prominent person, before inking it (Appendix) - this is in order to get the

exact face so that it would be recognisable by the public; otherwise he would draw with

a pen, as it would eliminate the need to erase the initial pencil marks. Lat admitted that

his drawings had simplified with the passage of years, “...Once upon a time I would

draw a table at a coffee shop and what's under the table. Now I'll just draw somebody

sitting down. You can't even tell if there's a table or not.” (Siti Rohani, 2007). Music, a

hobby of his (Lat, 1980), used to be an essential, although no longer a necessary

accompaniment (Appendix) when Lat draws. The music would differ according to what

he wished to draw; for example, when drawing kampung scenes, he would listen to old

Malay songs, while McCartney numbers are needed for drawing fashionable girls

(Willmott, 1989). Lat maintains that the way he draws has not changed with time, as he

would “...take out a piece of drawing paper, sit down and proceed to draw..” until the

drawing is completed (Siti Rohani, 2007), which normally takes about an hour with the

drawings often done in the mornings (Willmott, 1989). He however admits that he does

not “...do much colouring any more...” and when he did, he would “...use water-color or

felt-tipped marker pens...” (Campbell, 2007). He prefers to portray things around him

(The Star, 12 August 2007), that he has researched and observed (Willmott, 1989),

which the audience can relate to. For example, when people were talking about the 12th

general elections and guessing the date it would be held, he used the metaphor of a

fortune teller and drew a scene from Nujum Pak Belalang, an old P. Ramlee comedy

about a fortune teller, that Malaysians were familiar with (The Star, 12 August 2007).

Lat would look at the drawing and the overall impact he wanted it to have, before

deciding on the the type of lettering for the text (Appendix), for whether the upper case

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or lower case, cursive writing or even the Arabic script (or Jawi) was used, it would

give a different effect to the picture. The choice of language (English, Malay, or the

colloquial) and words used were chosen based on the impact they would have

(Appendix) and to ensure that the connotations would be understood and the message

would be conveyed. He draws “...to gain friendship and to do something that would

appeal to readers - so that they feel good about it no matter who they are. The whole

idea is to make people smile and feel that they are part of the whole thing, no matter

what the subject.”(Publishers Weekly, 20 November, 2007).

1.2 The Issue

The issue to be investigated is how Dr. M is portrayed in the caricatures drawn

by Lat, in his compilation “Dr. Who?!”, the bulk of which had originally appeared as

editorial cartoons in NST, when Dr. M was in the Malaysian Cabinet.

1.3 Research Objective

The research aims to find out how Dr. M is portrayed in “Dr. Who?!”, as well as

the tools (linguistics or otherwise) that Lat utilises in his portrayal of Dr. M.

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1.4 Research Questions

Two research questions were formulated, based on the research objectives. They

are:

a) How does Lat portray Dr. M as a private person and a public persona?

b) What linguistic and non-linguistic (visual) tools does he use in his portrayal?

1.5 Methodology

This research employed a qualitative analysis of randomly selected caricatures,

with Lat subsequently interviewed to verify findings and gain insights into his work.

The drawings were chosen based on two considerations, namely what Dr. M's known

characteristics were portrayed and the features used in the caricatures. As Lat's

drawings contained both words and pictures, Fairclough’s 3-Dimensional framework

was used for the former and Cook's framework for the latter.

1.6 Definitions

Definitions outline the perimeters of a study. Keywords with other related and

relevant words pertaining to the topic “The portrayal of Dr. M in Lat’s “Dr. Who?!””

as defined in the “Concise Oxford English Dictionary” (2002) as follows:

Caricature – a depiction of a person in which distinguishing characteristics

are exaggerated for comic or grotesque effect

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Cartoon – a drawing executed in an exaggerated style for humorous or

satirical effect

Editorial – a newspaper article giving an opinion on a topical issue

Humour – the quality of being amusing or comic, especially as expressed in

literature or speech

Political – of or relating to the government or public affairs of a country

Richardson (2008) differentiated between cartoon and caricature, with similar

meanings to the definitions given above. Melor (1999) as quoted in Zurina Haji Zubir

(2004), differentiated a cartoon and a comic strip, with “a cartoon is usually a one frame

caricature which is used to present a particular idea” with captions being optional, while

“a comic strip is a form of cartoon which has more than one frame and is normally run

in a daily or weekly newspaper”. This paper makes no such distinction (between

cartoon and comic strip, and between cartoon and caricature) as the caricatures

investigated sometimes come in more than one frame, with no other linkages between

one and another except that they are Lat's take on Dr. M and the then current issues.

1.7 Significance of Study

Studies on cartoons have previously been undertaken. Foreign studies like

Jensen (2008) and Greenberg (2002) analysed printed political cartoons, while

Väätäinen (2002) was on an animated series. Locally, Jariah Mohd. Jan (2004) looked

at genderised talk in selected English language cartoon strips of foreign origin, while

Zurina Haji Zubir (2004) studied the use of Lat's cartoons for teaching writing, and

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Norhayati Hood (2004) used a semiotic framework in her study of cartoons in Malay

newspapers as symbols of culture. On the local front to date, no study found has looked

at cartoons from a discourse perspective. This study attempts to fill the void.

1.8 Scope and Limitations

Lat has drawn many cartoons of Dr. M since both figures gained prominence.

However, due to the size of this study and time constraint, the cartoons to be analysed

are limited to those found in the compilation “Dr. Who?!”, as a complete examination

of all Lat’s cartoons on Dr. M since 1974 would be beyond the scope of this small

research.

1.9 Conclusion

Lat's cartoons invoke laughter. Despite the surface humour, there appear to be

other messages subtly (and perhaps, unwittingly) imbedded in his caricatures. This

study attempts to discover and discuss what those messages are and how they are

presented.

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